Meditation-induced psychosis: a narrative review and individual patient data analysis.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to collate case reports of psychotic disorders associated with meditative practice and discuss the relationship between psychosis and meditation.
Results Summary
The review identified 28 cases of psychotic disorders linked to meditation, with varied diagnoses and precipitating factors, but could not establish a causal relationship. The study also acknowledges existing research on meditation's beneficial effects for psychotic disorders.
Population
Individuals aged 18-57 years with reported psychotic disorders (acute psychosis, schizophrenia, mania with psychotic symptoms, schizoaffective disorder).
Effective Dosage
Not specified
Duration
Not specified
Interactions
None mentioned
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Meditation | neutral | health benefits | - | - | is associated with | #1 |
Meditation | increase | psychotic states | - | - | may trigger or exacerbate | #2 |
Transcendent, Mindfulness, Buddhist Meditation like Qigong, Zen, and Theraveda, and others like Bikram yoga, Pranic Healing, and Hindustan Type meditation | neutral | psychotic disorders | patients with age range of 18-57 years | - | were described in cases of | #3 |
Meditative practice | decrease | psychotic disorders | patients with psychotic disorders | - | has a beneficial effect | #4 |
BACKGROUND: Meditation is associated with health benefits; however, there are reports that it may trigger or exacerbate psychotic states. In this review, we aim to collate case reports of psychotic disorders occurring in association with meditative practice and to discuss the relationship between psychosis and meditation. METHODOLOGY: We performed case-based analysis of all the existing studies published in English language using PubMed, PsycINFO, Cochrane, Scopus, EMBASE, CINAHL and Google Scholar with the search terms; 'Psychosis' OR 'Psychotic Symptoms' OR 'Schizophrenia' AND 'Meditation.' RESULTS: A total of 19 studies and 28 cases were included in the review. The patients described had an age range of 18-57 years; there was equal distribution of males and females. The diagnoses included acute psychosis in 14 cases, schizophrenia in 7 cases, mania with psychotic symptoms in 3 cases, and schizoaffective disorder in 1 case. The types of meditation described were Transcendent, Mindfulness, Buddhist Meditation like Qigong, Zen, and Theraveda, and others like Bikram yoga, Pranic Healing, and Hindustan Type meditation. Of the 28 cases reported, 14 patients had certain precipitating factors like insomnia, lack of food intake, history of mental illness, stress, and psychoactive substance use. CONCLUSION: There are case reports of psychotic disorder arising in association with meditative practice; however, it is difficult to attribute a causal relationship between the two. At the same time, there is a body of research describing the beneficial effect of meditative practice in clinical settings for patients with psychotic disorders. Appropriately designed studies are needed to further investigate the relationship between meditative practice and psychosis.